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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22366135">Being Home</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/greeny1710/pseuds/greeny1710'>greeny1710</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Our Families [7]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Formula 1 RPF</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Adopted Children, Anxiety, Domestic Fluff, Fluff, Fluff with a Happy Ending, M/M, POV Child, Parent-Child Relationship, Parenthood, literally just all the fluff</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-01-22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-06-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 11:20:56</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>6,899</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22366135</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/greeny1710/pseuds/greeny1710</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Series of ficlets about Carlos and Lando raising their daughters, Olivia and Emily :)</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Lando Norris/Carlos Sainz Jr</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Our Families [7]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1569160</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>36</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>125</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Coming home</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This first fic was me being self-indulgent and wanting to write about Olivia being soft and also happy. It's from her POV and she's still six years old in this, so sometimes the grammar or the words might seem a bit odd, but obviously a child's internal monologue is very different to an adults and so I wanted to try something a bit different. </p><p>I also needed to write some fluff bc the long-form fic I'm writing atm is just pure angst and sometimes you need a break from it (even tho I love the angst lol)</p><p>I hope you enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Olivia loved living with Lando and Carlos. They were the best dads in the world! And she told them that all the time. She even told Lukas and Lukas kept saying that his dads were better but Olivia knew her dads were better because they picked her and Emily specially because they loved them so much!</p><p>Lando and Carlos had even let her come with them to see their race cars in the factory and they’d let Olivia play on the simulator (but she had to sit on Lando’s knee for that because her legs weren’t big enough yet to reach the pedals but Lando said he’d teach her when she was big enough and Olivia really hoped so because it was SO MUCH FUN and she was faster than Carlos was and that meant she was the best!). </p><p>But that didn’t mean that sometimes Olivia wasn’t scared at the idea of living with Carlos and Lando forever. </p><p>The first weekend they left for the race, Olivia had been quiet the entire time. She and Emily was staying with Lando’s Mum and Dad. And they were nice because they let Lando’s sister teach Olivia how to stroke the horses and they were really big but really fun too (not as fun as getting to drive with Lando though). And they cooked Olivia’s favourite dinner and let her have a bath with Emily and made Olivia’s favourite breakfast. And they took them shopping so that they could buy toys to keep at Lando’s Mum and Dad’s for next time they stayed there. But Olivia had an angry tummy the entire time. </p><p>Her tummy kept flipping because she was scared Lando and Carlos wouldn’t come home. They had to. Because Olivia and Emily was at Lando’s Mum’s house so they had to come home because Lando saw his Mum a lot. </p><p>But would they forget? </p><p>Olivia was sure they would. Now they were driving really really fast again she was sure their heads would get hit and they’d forget that they’d even left Olivia and Emily there. Or maybe they’d realise they had lots more fun without Olivia and Emily and didn’t want them anymore. </p><p>Lando’s Dad had sat next to Olivia and explained what her dads were up to the entire weekend whenever she could watch them drive the cars. And Olivia grinned big when she saw Lando has his purple helmet on. She hadn’t even known that he took it again! When she saw it, Olivia was sure that it meant that Lando and Carlos still loved her and they’d want to come home, otherwise Lando wouldn’t have been able to wear his special purple helmet again. </p><p>Olivia watched them race and she cheered when Lando and Carlos both finished the race. She smiled when the cameraman pointed the camera at them both whilst they were hugging and Lando and Carlos waved down the camera. Olivia waved back. </p><p>But the best part had been the Monday. </p><p>Lando’s dad dropped Olivia off at school in the morning and she quietly played with Lukas and Elliot and Eva. But it wasn’t as fun as normal. Her tummy was still angry and she was sure that Lando and Carlos would forget to come pick her up from school. She didn’t want to go through this again. It had been scary with Old Mommy. She thought she could trust Lando and Carlos. They said she could live with them forever. </p><p>At the end of the day, Olivia waved bye bye to Lukas and then plonked her head down on the table. She was sad. </p><p>“Olivia?” The teacher said, smiling encouragingly. “It’s your turn to go now sweetie.”</p><p>Olivia grabbed her lunchbox and backpack and trudged to the door. </p><p>“Daddy!” She screamed, jumping forward and wrapping herself around Lando. “Daddy you came back!”</p><p>“I told you we’d come back as quick as we could, little Liv,” Lando said, catching Olivia in his arms and spinning his little girl around. </p><p>“Is Carlos at home too?”</p><p>“Yeah, baby, he’s with Emily.”</p><p>Olivia beamed up at Lando and scrambled to climb higher, tugging on Lando’s coat as she tried to pull herself up more. When she got there, Olivia kissed Lando’s cheek and hugged his neck as tight as he could. </p><p>He’d come home. Lando and Carlos had come home. </p><p>Olivia wrapped her arms and legs around Lando and held on tight as he started to walk her to the car. Olivia kept the side of her head pressed against Lando’s and adjusted herself carefully so that Lando wouldn’t notice she was crying which meant that she could wipe her eyes properly without worrying him. She didn’t want Lando to think she was upset he’d come home, because she was actually really really happy and she didn’t really know why she was crying but she’d missed Lando and Carlos a lot and they did come home when they promised her they would. She just couldn’t believe it. </p><p>When they got to the car, Olivia didn’t want to let go. Part of her was scared that when she let go of Lando, it wouldn’t be him carrying her. That in fact it would be Adam, or Cisca, or one of Lando’s sisters. She didn’t want to risk it. If she kept her eyes closed and kept her face pressed into his neck, she could keep pretending it was Lando. That he really had come home.</p><p>“Hey, come on my little octopus, time to buckle up.” Lando murmured, tugging on the end of Olivia’s plaits ever so slightly. </p><p>Olivia allowed Lando to pull her away, and she smiled when Lando dropped her into the seat. It was still Lando. He was still here. </p><p>“You’re really home, Lando.” Olivia murmured, grabbing Lando’s jaw in her hands and tugging him forward so she could hug him again. Lando’s hugs were the bestest thing in the whole wide world and Olivia never wanted him to let go ever again. </p><p>“We promised you, little Liv, we’re always going to come home to you and Emily, okay? You’re our little girls, and you’re ours forever. I promise you, we will never leave you and never come home, okay?” Lando told her, and Olivia trusted him. Lando told her the truth all the time and Olivia didn’t think he was going to not tell her the truth now. </p><p>“I know, I just really missed you and Carlos, and I was scared,” Olivia whispered softly, looking down and fiddling with one of the pleats on her grey skirt. </p><p>“We really missed you too Livvy, and I hated not having you there with us. But I promise, next season, you can come to some of the races with us. It’s just at the minute, it’s a bit scary and you’re still getting used to being in our family and I don’t want you to get scared at the big races, is that okay?” </p><p>Olivia nodded and then looked up at Lando. </p><p>“Can I have a racesuit like Lukas and Jak? ‘Cause Lukas does and he said that Uncle Max and Uncle Dan are better than you and Carlos and if I don’t have a racesuit too then I can’t prove that you and Carlos are better.”</p><p>“Of course you can have a racesuit, kiddo. We’ll even get them to put your name on it, does that sound fun?”</p><p>Olivia grinned and nodded. </p><p>“Can we go home now? I miss Carlos too.”</p><p>“Of course we can, bub. Are you all strapped in?”</p><p>Olivia nodded and she watched Lando go around to the front of the car. Olivia stared and smiled at the back of Lando’s head the entire time, and whenever Lando looked up in the mirror and smiled back, Olivia felt a rush of happiness. </p><p>She’d never been this happy. </p><p>When Lando pulled up, Olivia unbuckled her seatbelt and waited for Lando to come around and unlock the door. She jumped down and gathered her stuff up, and bounced impatiently at Lando’s side for him to finish locking the car. Once he was done, Olivia slid her hand into his and rest her head against his forearm as they walked up the driveway. Lando took her lunchbox whilst she climbed the stairs and as soon as Lando had unlocked the front door, Olivia went steaming through to the kitchen where she could hear Carlos and jumped at him. </p><p>“Carlos!” </p><p>“¡Mi niña pequeña!” Carlos replied, hugging his eldest as tightly as he could and kissed her cheek, “¿Cómo estás, mi amor?”</p><p>“Erm…” Olivia wracked her brain and clapped her hands as she thought, “Bien, gracias. I think?”</p><p>“Very good, Olivia! You’re so clever, that was perfect, mi amor.”</p><p>Olivia beamed and pressed herself tighter into Carlos. She waved at Emily over Carlos’ shoulder, but she’d talk to her sister in a minute. Right now, she was busy hugging Carlos.</p><p>“Lando, come hug us too!” Olivia said, beckoning him over.</p><p>Lando walked over to grab Emily from her highchair and dipped under Carlos’ arm that wasn’t holding Olivia. Olivia unwrapped one arm from Carlos’ neck and draped it around Emily and Lando instead. Balanced in between them with her little sister there too, Olivia had never felt more loved. </p><p>Carlos and Lando had left, but they’d come back too. So maybe Olivia could trust them. She’d like it if she could. </p><p>“Carlos, Lando, can I read the bedtime story tonight? I got a new book at school.” She asked, dropping her head onto Carlos’ shoulder and looking at them both with doe eyes. </p><p>Carlos and Lando looked at each other and grinned. </p><p>“That sounds like an excellent plan, little Liv. Why don’t you go and get out of your uniform and we’ll play for a bit before we have to have some dinner, and then after bathtime you can read us your story, yeah?”</p><p>Olivia grinned and pressed final lingering kisses to both of her dads scratchy cheeks. </p><p>“I love you,” She whispered to Carlos.</p><p>“I love you,” She whispered again but to Lando. </p><p>Then she shimmied down Carlos and ran off. First Olivia pulled her coat off and hung it up, untied her little black converse and placed them on the shoerack, then she ran off upstairs. It was a bit of a mess trying to get her school tights off, but as Olivia sat on the floor tugging at them, she looked over to her backpack. </p><p>In her backpack was the new book she’d gotten. </p><p>Only what she hadn’t told Carlos and Lando was that it was a book that she wrote. It was meant to be a story about the best day of her life, and Olivia had been the only one who had written a story that made their teacher cry happy tears. </p><p>Lukas had written about the day he got his little brother, which made their teacher smile.</p><p>But Olivia wrote about the day she was saved. When Carlos and Lando came to meet her for the first time.</p><p>She’d been scared, because she was in the hospital, but when Lando walked in, there was a lightbulb that was hitting him and making him look like an angel. And Olivia knew then. She never told them that. That’s what the story tonight would tell them. But she’d known then that she’d found her daddies. Carlos and Lando had smiled the entire time, once Lando was done crying, and Olivia was really happy to talk to them. Carlos made her smile and laugh and she wasn’t scared because she was in the hospital anymore. </p><p>Olivia had never expected that she’d find two people that loved both her and her sister equally so easily. And she’d spent so long afraid that someone would take Emily away from her. But when Lando held her and Emily in his arms that first time a few weeks after meeting him in the hospital, Olivia felt like she was home. </p><p>She’d found her daddies and they’d found their babies. </p><p>Olivia knew that Lando had been sad before they had her, and she didn’t know why. But Lando seemed happy now. And Olivia was really happy that he was happy. </p><p>Olivia wanted to keep making them happy. She hoped the story tonight would make them happy. There was no better feeling than being home. And Olivia had never been so excited for bedtime.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I AM SO SOFT AND I AM SO EXCITED TO CONTINUE WRITING ABOUT THIS FAMILY. </p><p>Prompts are always accepted either in the comments or as a message on Tumblr - they go onto a massive list and get written as the inspiration takes me :)</p><p>Tumblr available at 3303andmore</p><p>Kudos, comments and feedback are always greatly appreciated and I hope you enjoyed.</p><p>Until the next one folks x</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Storytime</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Olivia reads a story to her Papas and thinks about how great things are</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>request fill for the absolutely delightful Pinkquill22 who hoped to see Olivia read her story to her Daddies and after all the angst of Protect Me Big Brother I think we deserved some soft happiness</p><p>This is also from Olivia's POV and so the word choices and sentence structure is meant to reflect that. </p><p>Also she's like 7, so the story is very basic but she's an angel and I love her.</p><p>Hope you enjoy x</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Olivia sat up in between Carlos and Lando, her fingers nervously toying with the fabric of her school book bag. </p><p>She really hoped Lando and Carlos liked it.</p><p>She’d worked really <i>really</i> hard on the words and the pictures and Miss Thomas, her teacher, had said that Olivia did really good and that she thought Olivia’s new family would love it but Olivia wanted more than just a thought. She really wanted them to love it because Olivia was scared that when she read it to them they wouldn’t understand that Olivia loved them or that Olivia loved living with them, but she really did. They made her really happy and they made Emily smile and giggle and that’s what meant the world to Olivia.</p><p>But it wasn’t just for that reason that Olivia was scared.</p><p>She’d written something that she was scared Lando and Carlos would be upset or angry with her for. </p><p>She’d called them Daddy and Papi after Miss Thomas told her the Spanish word for Daddy. </p><p>Lando and Carlos had never told her she could call them Daddy and she hoped they wouldn’t be angry that she wanted to call them Daddy and Papi. It’s just, well, Lukas got to call his Daddies Daddy and Papa and Olivia wanted that too because Lukas said it really happily and Olivia wanted to feel that happy too. Lando and Carlos made her <i>so</i> happy and she hoped they’d be happy too.</p><p>“Right, Querida, are you ready to read us your book?” Carlos asked, brushing his fingers through Olivia’s light brown waves of hair. </p><p>Olivia nodded slowly and took a deep breath.</p><p>Miss Thomas said they’d love it. She hoped Miss Thomas was right. And Miss Thomas never told her to not call them Daddy and Papi so she hoped that it meant that she could because Miss Thomas was an adult too and Lando and Carlos were adults and all adults knew everything so it was going to be fine, wasn’t it?</p><p>Olivia ripped the velcro apart and dug her hand in the book bag and wrapped her fingers around the string holding the story together. </p><p>“Can you remember what it’s called before you see the title, Liv?” Lando gently asked. </p><p>Olivia nodded.</p><p>“My happy day,” she told them, smiling at her lap. </p><p>“Sounds very fun,” Carlos interjected, lightly kissing her head.</p><p>Olivia took a deep breath. She thought it sounded fun too. </p><p>Olivia pulled the papers out of her bag and placed them down on her lap, smoothing them out and smiling at the pictures on the front paper. Miss Thomas had told her that all good books had good pictures on the front which was called the cover and so she had to draw a good picture to go on the cover too. And so Olivia drew a picture of her stood in between Lando and Carlos and holding their hands and Lando was holding Emily too. Olivia made sure to draw them all with HUGE smiles because Lando and Carlos smiled a lot since Olivia got to live with them and so it only made sense that if Olivia was going to draw a picture of her family they’d all be smiling.</p><p>“I made the story,” Olivia quietly explained, “Is that okay?”</p><p>She looked up and saw Lando looked like he was crying but Olivia didn’t get to apologise before Lando was pulling her into his arms and kissing her forehead repeatedly and whispering how proud of her he was.</p><p>“It’s beautiful, darling, you’ve done a brilliant job. Did you do it all yourself?”</p><p>“Miss Thomas did the string bit ‘cause that involved scissors and we can’t use the scissors,” Olivia told them, her voice muffled from where it was pressed into Lando’s chest. </p><p>“That’s very responsible,” Carlos said, leaning forward and pulling both Lando and Olivia into him which meant that Olivia was in a sandwich which made her giggle.</p><p>“I gotta read you the story Daddy,” she laughed as Lando and Carlos kissed every bit of her face that they could reach.</p><p>She never noticed the way that a kiss lingered a bit longer when Lando and Carlos caught each other’s eyes and smiled tearily at the term.</p><p>“Sorry, Livvy, you tell us your story baby,” Lando said, pushing Olivia back enough that she was settled in between them and was still able to sit up enough to read the story and turn the pages. </p><p>“So, Miss Olivia Valentina Norris-Sainz, the most talented little lady in the whole world, do tell, what is the story you shall be telling us tonight?” Lando asked, starting out the reading like they would with any other school reading book she was tasked with telling to them.</p><p>“Mr Lando, it’s My Happy Day,” She nodded, and pointed to the cover, “This is me, and this is Emily, and this is you Lando, and this is you Carlos.”</p><p>Lando and Carlos both leaned in to take a proper look at the drawing. </p><p>“It’s very beautiful, Liv,” Carlos told her, smiling at his little girl. </p><p>Olivia grinned and turned the paper. Each page had a drawing and two lines that she'd written some words on underneath it.</p><p>The first drawing was one of her but instead of smiling she was sad. </p><p>“I used to have an old mommy and daddy,” Oliva read, pointing at the words as she read, “But Old Mommy and Daddy made us sad.”</p><p>Olivia turned the paper. The next drawing was of her in Miss Tess’ house.</p><p>“So I got to live with Miss Tess with Emily! It was a lot of fun. I played games and went swimming.”</p><p>The next page had a drawing of Olivia with a lady wearing a blue top and trousers.</p><p>“One day I hit my head and went to the hospital. The nurses were very nice.”</p><p>The next picture was back to Carlos and Lando, only this time they were holding a different baby.</p><p>“Then I met Carlos and Lando! They bought Jak to see us and I got to play with them and Lukas and Jak and Uncle Max and Uncle Dan.”</p><p>The next page was again another picture of Carlos and Lando, only Lando was sad. </p><p>“Lando was sad but then I made him smile! And then he asked if we could play some more!”</p><p>Olivia turned the page to see another drawing of the four of them together.</p><p>“Lando and Carlos came to play lots and lots! And they played with Emily. They made it fun.”</p><p>The second to last page was Olivia holding Lando and Carlos’ hands and Emily beside them (floating somewhat, but no one took note) stood beside a house. </p><p>“I got to go home with them and now I live with them all the time but when they go to races I stay with Lando's Mummy and Daddy.”</p><p>The final picture was of a giant heart with a giant happy smile drawn onto it.</p><p>“I love my Daddy and Papi they are the best. They make me smile every single day.”</p><p>Olivia closed the book and looked down at it. She felt scared again that she had done the wrong thing by calling them Daddy and Papi and saying she loved them, but she hoped that they still liked the story.</p><p>“Olivia, you are fantastic,” Carlos whispered, kissing her head, “Do you want to call us Daddy and Papi?”</p><p>Olivia shrugged.</p><p>“Liv, baby, it’s your choice. If you want to call us that, we’d love it, but only if you’re ready.”</p><p>“But you are my Daddy?” Olivia questioned, frowning. </p><p>They lived together forever now and Carlos called her ‘mi hijas’ which Olivia didn’t know what that meant yet, but she guessed it was good and also they said ‘te amo’ and ‘I love you’ a lot so that meant that they were a family, didn’t it? </p><p>“I want to be your Daddy more than anything,” Lando whispered, “You and Em, you’re my babies. I’d love to be your Daddy but only if you want me to be it too.”</p><p>“You love me?”</p><p>“Of course,” Lando whispered.</p><p>“Then you’re my Daddy,” Olivia said, shrugging like it was perfectly normal. “Do you love me Carlos?”</p><p>“Te amo mucho, Olivia,” Carlos nodded.</p><p>“You can be my Papi then.”</p><p>“Nothing would make me proud than being your Papi,” Carlos told her, “Are you sure you want to call us that?”</p><p>“You love me and I love you, so that means we’re a family and that means you're my daddies,” Olivia said with as much authority as her shaky voice could have. </p><p>Olivia quickly ducked down under her blankie she’d bought in with her and buried her face. She didn’t want to cry and she didn’t really know why she was crying, because she was really really happy but maybe this was like when Miss Thomas cried because she was happy with Olivia’s story. But Olivia wasn’t crying because of her story now. She was crying because she didn’t know what she'd done to have two daddies that loved her and said they wanted to be her daddy and papi so much because she wasn’t special and Emily was much better than she was because Emily didn’t cry as much as Olivia did but Lando never seemed to mind and she hoped that meant that Lando wouldn’t be upset she was crying.</p><p>“Hey, it’s okay, it’s alright, you’re allowed to cry, darling,” Lando whispered once he pushed himself under the blankie too. </p><p>Olivia let out a sob and threw herself at Lando, clutching onto him and crying into his chest.</p><p>“Okay, Livvy, it’s okay, I’ve got you,” Lando comforted, rubbing his hands up and down her back. </p><p>Carlos joined them under the blankie and gently threaded his fingers through her hair and they both waited until Olivia could breathe again before they stopped.</p><p>“Your story told us we’re a family, yeah, so that means we can cry in front of each other and it’s okay. Because we love you and you’re staying with us forever,” Lando said.</p><p>“Mi pequeña princesa y mi pequeño rey,” Carlos whispered.</p><p>“Did you just call me little?!” Lando realised, his voice going higher as Olivia giggled.</p><p>Lando and Carlos were sticking their tongues out at each other and all it did was make Olivia laugh as she wiped the tears from her face. </p><p>She loved laughing with them.</p><p>She loved living with them.</p><p>Olivia loved being home.</p><p>And most importantly, she loved her daddy and papi a lot. And they loved her too. </p><p>And when Olivia fell asleep not too long later, it was tucked between her daddies and their love for her and each other. </p><p>Olivia liked falling asleep with them.</p><p>It was nice to feel safe when you fell asleep and Daddy always made sure she had Shark and her blankie and a good night kiss from him and Papi and it was enough to make sure that Olivia could sleep without the scary men running through her dreams anymore. Now she only dreamt about Daddy and Papi and Emily and getting to play with them instead. It was fun to fall asleep with them and the other happy people instead. Olivia liked it.</p><p>But she loved falling asleep in Daddy and Papi’s arms more than anything.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>:)</p><p>I'm soft</p><p>Requests are always welcome, either in comments or over at my Tumblr on 3303andmore</p><p>Comments, kudos and feedback is always greatly appreciated❤️</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Friends</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>based on a prompt from <b>phtxgwynn</b> from literally December (and I am so fucking sorry it took exactly sixth months nearly for me to do this) who said: <i>Yessss more story about this lil fam please, maybe collab with the Ricciardo?</i> and I finally got around to it </p>
<p>I hope you enjoy :)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Olivia tightly clutched onto Lando and Carlos’ hands as they walked, swinging her between them every once in a while and making their little girl laugh loudly. Lando had his other hand on the pushchair, pushing Emily along as she slept happily in her chair, the noise of her sister and the outside world not filtering through. </p>
<p>Lando had pulled Olivia’s hair back into a bun, some of the strands getting loose and tickling her cheeks as she jumped between them. Her burgundy dungarees had been turned up around her ankles to stop them dragging through the puddles, but Carlos needn’t have bothered considering his little girl was busy jumping in every puddle she could found and splashing up her trainers and socks and painting the exposed skin of her shins.</p>
<p>“Livvy, be careful, darling,” Lando warned, “Don’t get your shoes too wet.”</p>
<p>“But Uncle Maxy will dry them off!”</p>
<p>“Yes, I know he will, but if they’re still too wet by time we go home you’re going to have icky feet, aren’t you?”</p>
<p>Olivia sighed and nodded, instead choosing to bounce and skip between her dads as they walked and ignoring the puddles she so desperately wanted to jump in.</p>
<p>“You are such a good Dad,” Carlos whispered, and Lando flushed under his gaze.</p>
<p>“It’s like having my little sisters around again,” Lando shrugged, “Only this one actually listens when I tell her what to do.”</p>
<p>“You wait until she’s a stroppy teenager complaining about make-up and boys and periods.”</p>
<p>“Bagsy the boys, you can deal with make-up and periods,” Lando said, pointing his tongue out when Carlos mock glared at him.</p>
<p>“That means you have to do the S E X talk,” Carlos quietly murmured, mindful that Olivia didn’t hear. She was at an age in which she was noticing what words spelt out were meant to be, and there was no way either of them wanted to get into a conversation about what sex was and why it happens with their <i>seven year old</i>.</p>
<p>“Daddy?”</p>
<p>“Yes, Liv?”</p>
<p>“Can I play on Lukas’ PlayStation when we get there?”</p>
<p>“You’ll have to ask Uncle Maxy sweetheart, he might say that Lukas has already played on it too much today so he can’t play with you.”</p>
<p>“Okay,” Olivia happily agreed, spreading her arms slightly so that the bat wings of her coat flapped in the wind.</p>
<p>“Look Daddy! I’m a bat!”</p>
<p>“The prettiest bat in all the land,” Lando agreed as Olivia beamed up at him.</p>
<p>She’s lost her first tooth a few days ago, and every time she looked up at Lando and grinned wide at him, her tongue peeking through that little gap ever so slightly, Lando winced. </p>
<p>He wasn’t squeamish. </p>
<p>He wasn’t. </p>
<p>He swears.</p>
<p>He just didn’t like seeing the gap in his little girl’s mouth.</p>
<p>It was creepy.</p>
<p>And the whole tooth fairy thing was a <i>whole other issue</i> of Lando’s and he wasn’t ready to get into that. </p>
<p>“Daddy, can I get a batman costume? ‘Cause we got fancy dress at school and I wanna be batman.”</p>
<p>“If that’s what you want, baby,” Lando agreed, “We can have a look around but if you want to be batman you can be.”</p>
<p>Olivia looked up at Lando and grinned, bouncing beside him before breaking free when they got to Dan and Max’s house. She sprinted up the driveway, leaving her parents and sister behind and bouncing at the front door, waiting for Lando to give her the nod that she could knock on the door.</p>
<p>Olivia knocked fast and quick, shouting out for Uncle Maxy and Uncle Danny as she waited for them to open the door. </p>
<p>Lukas was the one to open the door, Jak holding his hand with Max behind them.</p>
<p>“Hi Uncle Max!” Olivia bounced, jumping up at him and wrapping her arms around him. </p>
<p>“Hello, kindje, how are you?”</p>
<p>“Bien, Uncle Maxy, gracias,” she grinned, “Look! I lost my tooth!” Olivia helpfully pointed it out in case Max didn’t see the empty spot in the front of her mouth.</p>
<p>“You’re so grown up!” Max agreed, ruffling Lukas’ hair when he frowned at it.</p>
<p>“Daddy,” Lukas murmured, leaning back into Max’s legs, “I don’t wanna lose my tooth, I wanna keep it.”</p>
<p>Max laughed lowly and squatted down, pulling his two boys into his front as he explained to Lukas that losing your teeth was part of being a big boy and growing up so you could get rid of your little teeth and get big teeth instead. </p>
<p>“Is that why Papa looks like a horse, ‘cause he got big, big boy teeth?” Lukas innocently asked causing Max to cackle and throw his head back. </p>
<p>“Your Papa just has an extra big smile because he loves you extra amounts,” Max told him, smiling at Lando as he saw Lando resisting the urge to make a joke about Dan and horses. </p>
<p>It was a joke definitely not made for little ears, and when Olivia ran off with Lukas and Max put Jak down for his afternoon nap, he’d probably hear it then, but as for now, too many little ears that were way too impressionable and who didn’t need teaching anything more inappropriate.</p>
<p>Definitely not Lukas. </p>
<p>Lando already knew about the pure chaos that Max’s oldest son could create.</p>
<p>“Uncle Max,” Olivia asked, swinging her foot back and forth as she looked sweetly at Max. </p>
<p>“Yes darling?”</p>
<p>“Can me and Lukas play on the playstation?”</p>
<p>“If it’s okay with Daddy,” he nodded, to which Olivia just immediately nodded. </p>
<p>“It is.”</p>
<p>“I didn’t hear you ask Daddy, Olivia,” Max reminded her and Olivia turned to look up at Lando with wide eyes. </p>
<p>“Please Daddy,” she murmured, her bottom lip jutting out just so. </p>
<p>“Take your shoes off and hang your coat up, get a drink first and then you can play, yeah?”</p>
<p>“Okay!” Olivia flopped down to sit on the floor right in the doorway, wrestling with her laces until she sighed and looked up at Lando. “Daddy, help please.”</p>
<p>Carlos was busy sorting Emily out with Max and so Lando knelt down to undo her right trainer.</p>
<p>“You gotta do it like Daddy does,” Lukas told her instead, taking the two cords and pulling them to undo the knot until Olivia could shimmy the shoe off. </p>
<p>“Thank you for helping, Lukas,” Lando told him, ruffling the little boy’s hair. </p>
<p>“Uncle Do,” Lukas pouted, ducking his head out of Lando’s range in the exact same way Max did if anyone came near his hair. Like father like son. Dramatic little buggers who only cared about their hair. </p>
<p>“Sorry Lucky,” Lando said as he tugged Lukas into his lap, kissing his hair briefly before Lukas stood up, grabbing Jak’s hand and letting Olivia take the other as they walked Jak through to find Daniel. </p>
<p>“How are things, then?” Max asked as Carlos and Lando followed him through to the living room. </p>
<p>“Exhausting,” Lando admitted without preamble, “Better these days, more prepared and everything’s starting to settle into place properly, but so tiring.”</p>
<p>“Yeah, it’s hard getting the balance at first. Trying to balance them with the races and putting in the work at the factories is hard. At least she’s in school.”</p>
<p>“That’s what makes it harder though. She’s at school all day during the week, and then when she’s free on the weekends, we’re away at the races. It’s just difficult balancing it all,” Lando lamented.</p>
<p>“It’ll come. I still maintain that bringing the boys to some of the races is the best thing we do. Sure we pay for Lukas to have a nanny who functions as a teacher for whilst we’re at them, but they’re getting the kind of education that you can’t get from a classroom. You just have to look at the way we’re raising our kids. They’re all being raised bilingual, or multilingual in my kids cases Seb and Kimi insist on teaching them German and Finnish, and they’re travelling the world and seeing new cultures. And Lukas loves it. Jak still doesn’t get it, but he’s only nearly two, so you can’t expect much.”</p>
<p>It was weird to hear Max sound so grown up, to talk about his kids’ education like it was the most normal thing in the world for Max Ricciardo to discuss over a cup of tea on a dreary Sunday off-race weekend. </p>
<p>But then again, Max had a six and a half year old son that he’d been raising for just as long, it only made sense that gone were the days of discussing FIFA and staying up late into the night playing COD and iRacing. </p>
<p>They still did that sometimes. </p>
<p>But Max had two kids to care for. </p>
<p>As did Lando. </p>
<p>It was funny to think how their lives had changed since Lando had joined McLaren all those years ago. </p>
<p>“Daddy! I got my juice because Uncle Dan gave me it and I said thank you lots and lots and lots and I gave him a hug ‘cause Jak and Lukas did and now can we go and play on the racing game please please please please,” the biggest change in Lando’s life came barrelling in, practically tripping onto his lap as she begged him to be allowed to go and play. </p>
<p>“If it’s still okay with Uncle Max.” Lando nodded.</p>
<p>“Yeah, it’s fine, Liv,” Max nodded before she could ask.</p>
<p>Lukas and Olivia barrelled up the stairs to Lukas’ playroom, both of them running around above their heads and their bright laughter filling the house. </p>
<p>“Hey Lando,” Dan said as he flopped onto the sofa, Jak in his arms who was close to falling asleep in the warm embrace of his Papa.</p>
<p>“Hi,” Lando nodded.</p>
<p>“Carlos.”</p>
<p>“Daniel.”</p>
<p>There was a weird bone of contention between the two of them that neither Max nor Lando had the energy to figure out. They got along just fine, happily talking about the kids and would sit together at the park when Lukas and Olivia met there for a playdate. </p>
<p>But there was definitely something weird there. </p>
<p>“Does Em need to have a sleep at all?” Dan asked, smiling at the little girl in Carlos’ arms who was settled back against Carlos’ chest and staring around the room with wide and beautiful dark eyes. </p>
<p>“She slept on the way over,” Lando answered, not missing the way Dan’s eyes softened as he looked at his daughter. He also didn’t miss the way that Dan hugged Max into his side a bit tighter, his fingers coming to rest just on his stomach and rub it comfortingly. </p>
<p>“No,” Max warned, and Daniel snapped his attention back to him. </p>
<p>“What?”</p>
<p>“No more kids, not for a while.”</p>
<p>“But she’s adorable,” Dan pouted as Jak played with the leg of his stuffed toy, “And we make such cute babies.”</p>
<p>“Dan,” Max told him sharply, shaking his head in warning to end that line of sensitive conversation. </p>
<p>“Sorry, didn’t think,” Dan grimaced.</p>
<p>“It’s fine,” Lando smiled, “I’ve got my babies. It’s alright.”</p>
<p>“I didn’t mean it like-”</p>
<p>“Yeah you did. You meant that you love the kids that you have with Max and want more. That’s fine, Dan.”</p>
<p>“I know, but I still feel bad.”</p>
<p>“I’ve got my kids. Liv and Emily are all I need and are better than any kids I could ever ask for. They’re perfect, Dan,” Lando reassured.</p>
<p>“Daddy! We got stuck on the game!” Lukas’ voice came through the house and Max sighed and stood up, nodding his head for Lando to follow him as they headed up to where each of their eldest were. </p>
<p>“How’s the night time with Emily?”</p>
<p>“She’s such a good baby. Like she’s obviously more vocal now and she’s sleeping in her own room so well, but it’s just weird you know?”</p>
<p>“Yeah, I know that feeling,” Max said, his voice soft in the way it did when he remembered his sons’ early months, “Is she moving around yet?”</p>
<p>“Oh god yeah. You leave her in one place and you come back literally ten seconds later and she’s covered the distance of the room,” Lando laughed.</p>
<p>“Wait till she’s crawling, you’re going to have a meltdown then.”</p>
<p>Lando laughed lightly, knowing that he definitely would. It wasn’t just that his little girl was growing up, but it was a reminder that things were normal. His two little angels had come to him in the most uncommon way, and yet when he looked at them, they were so obviously his kids. Olivia loved MotoGP and watching old races with Lando. Emily had the dark hair and eyes that so easily passed her as Carlos’ biological daughter. Olivia shouted more than she talked, just like Lando. And Emily was such a calm little girl. That was the one thing that indicated she wasn’t biologically Lando’s daughter.  </p>
<p>“Daddy!” Lukas’ insistent shout came again. </p>
<p>“I’m on my way!” Max argued.</p>
<p>“This is why you came last Daddy! ‘Cause you slow!” Lukas cheeked, squealing and running to the opposite side of the playroom as Max walked in, chasing his son around the room until he could catch him in his arms and turn him upside down, shaking and bouncing him slightly as he laughed heartily. </p>
<p>“Hi Daddy,” Olivia smiled sweetly, opening her arms for Lando to hug her and passing across her controller, “Lukas is bad at it, Daddy.”</p>
<p>Olivia climbed onto his lap as he sat down cross-legged on the floor, leaning back into his shoulder and pressing her face against his neck for a moment. </p>
<p>“I love you Daddy,” she told him. Lando’s heart still melted every single time he heard it. </p>
<p>“Love you too, Little Liv.”</p>
<p>“Tell me I’m faster than your Papa!” Max shouted playfully at Lukas, still holding his son upside down as Lukas protested. </p>
<p>“Never! Papa quicker!” </p>
<p>“Is Uncle Dan quicker?” Olivia asked curiously. </p>
<p>“Nah, your Uncle Max is, but Lukas is winding him up,” Lando explained.</p>
<p>“Is Lukas lying?”</p>
<p>“I don’t think so,” Lando told her, Olivia’s tiny hands coming to rest on Lando’s and help with the movements of the controller, “I think he thinks Uncle Dan is quicker, and I think Uncle Max is quicker. Who do you think is quicker?”</p>
<p>“You, Daddy,” Olivia said, “Or Uncle Charles. He zooms.”</p>
<p>“Excuse me.” Max’s voice fell quiet as he looked at Olivia, raising one eyebrow at her playfully.</p>
<p>“Uncle Char is soooooo slow,” Lukas protested, still held upside down with his jumper and t-shirt nearly covering his face, having fallen down. </p>
<p>“Nuh uh, he’s faster than Daddy and Papí and Uncle Dan <i>and</i> Uncle Max combined!”</p>
<p>“Wow Liv, way to strike a man whilst he’s down,” Lando muttered, as Olivia and an upside down Lukas argued over whether Charles was the quickest of all the drivers.</p>
<p>“My Daddy won the trophy this year!” Lukas argued, “That means he’s quickest all the time!”</p>
<p>“But you just said Uncle Dan was quickest! So Uncle Max can’t be best if you say Uncle Dan is also best! You can only have one best!”</p>
<p>“But Daddy won the trophy! Uncle Char came, Daddy what trophy does Uncle Char get?”</p>
<p>“He’s going to finish 3rd, baby, after your Papa.”</p>
<p>“Thank you Daddy,” Lukas grinned, “Uncle Char came 3rd! He’s so slow! He’s the worst.”</p>
<p>“Nuh uh! My Daddy is worst than Uncle Char!”</p>
<p>Max had to put Lukas down as he broke out into laughter, folding over until he had his head pressed against the floor at Olivia just completely tearing Lando down in the most innocent sounding way but at the same time so damn savage.</p>
<p>“Wow, Livvy, thanks,” Lando laughed, pushing his daughter off his lap playfully. </p>
<p>“No I didn’t mean it Daddy!” Olivia laughed, trying to climb onto Lando again and being thwarted every time by Lando shifting and raising his shoulders so Olivia couldn’t get on. She resorted to climbing up his back until she could clamber over his shoulders whilst Lukas instead stared at his own father. </p>
<p>“Daddy dead?” he asked as Max continued to laugh breathlessly.</p>
<p>“No,” Max wheezed, “Just found Liv funny, kiddo, that’s all.”</p>
<p>“Okay,” Lukas shrugged, accepting that his Dad was fine and looking back at the screen as Lando passed the level they were stuck on without hesitation. </p>
<p>“You may be the worst Uncle Lando, but you’re very good at this,” Lukas told him solemnly. </p>
<p>“Oh these kids just get better and better,” Lando rolled his eyes jokingly, Max laughed harder, and pulled Lukas onto his lap too, hugging Olivia and Lukas together. “My favourite little brats.”</p>
<p>“And you wanted to have Lukas over for a sleepover,” Max reminded him. </p>
<p>“Yeah on second thoughts after his pure savagery, maybe I’ll just <i>not</i>,” Lando joked to Max, only to cause Lukas to gasp.</p>
<p>“NO NO NO Uncle Lando, you’re the best! Please let me have a sleepover, please please please!”</p>
<p>“Please Daddy!” Olivia joined in, tying her hands together and rolling onto his knees as she looked at Lando. </p>
<p>“Have kids they said,” Max reminded him, smirking as the kids voices increased in volume, “It’ll be fun they said.”</p>
<p>“I’m regretting every second,” Lando exchanged a look with Max that only had Max shrug and hold his hands out in an ‘I warned you’ gesture. </p>
<p>They both knew it was a lie. </p>
<p>Neither of them even considering swapping their babies for the world. They were two tiny pieces of grown up perfection who made them laugh and smile every day. And downstairs were two quieter pieces of perfection who let them sleep through the night. </p>
<p>And frankly, they both found that pretty perfect. </p>
<p>Even if their eldest kids had a propensity for roasting them accidentally a lot.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I love when little kids are accidentally mean to their parents lmao</p>
<p>kudos, comments and feedback always greatly appreciated💙</p>
<p>Tumblr is at 3303andmore</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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